'Modern Family' cast strikes new salary deal

It’s a done deal: The cast of Modern Family has struck a new agreement that will keep the Emmy-winning ensemble well paid as it begins its fourth season on ABC.

“It’s unfortunate that things got to a public place,” co-creator Steve Levitan told reporters at ABC’s press tour party in Beverly Hills. “But at the end of the day, we’re all very good friends. There are a lot of people whose jobs it is to get in there and stir things up. And that’s what happened.”

All six adult actors — Ed O’Neill, Ty Burrell, Julie Bowen, Sofia Vergara, Eric Stonestreet and Jesse Tyler Ferguson, all of whom earned Emmy nods this month– were looking to boost their pay before the show returned to air. Negotiations blew up earlier this week when the cast refused to show up for a table read, then filed a a lawsuit seeking to void their seven-year contracts. The situation seemed to cool off Thursday when the cast agreed to return for another table read and both sides returned to the negotiation table later that day.

As part of the new agreement, the cast is dropping its lawsuit against the studio. Deadline reports the actors other than O’Neill will now earn in the $170,000-$180,000 per episode range, up from north of $60k, along with a piece of the syndication profits. O’Neill also got a boost on his $100k per episode paycheck.

Modern Family starts shooting its season premiere on Monday, an episode that Levitan is directing.

“I’m happy they’re going to get what they deserve,” Levitan said, and jokingly added: “Justin Bieber is now [playing] Cam.”

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